A force sensor, such as a bending beam sensor, measures a force exerted by an object on a surface to which the sensor is affixed. A standard bending beam strain sensor has an output that is large enough to be easily measured with readily available components. The bending beam sensor may include a strain gauge that measures strain generated by the force. Generally, the greater the force, the greater the generated strain. Thus, the strain gauge may be used to indirectly measure and compute the force exerted by a load on the beam, or an object attached to the beam.
However, in some cases a typical bending beam strain sensor may prove inadequate for measuring an exerted force. In the case of a plate supported by multiple beams, for example, it is possible that a force exerted on the plate may be measured inaccurately by a bending beam sensor due to a moment of the force. That is, when a force or load is applied to the plate, the strain measured by the standard bending beam strain sensor depends on the position of the force or load on the trackpad or plate and also the connection between the plate and the bending beam. This may prove problematic in certain mechanisms, such as a force-sensitive input device for a computing device. Examples of such input devices may include trackpads, buttons, keys on a keyboard, pressure-sensitive touch screens and so forth.
Thus, there remains a need for developing methods and device for load measurements on platforms supported with bending beams.